(My Sportsbook) - With six games remaining in the regular season, the San Francisco Giants find themselves holding a two-game advantage on their rival Los Angeles Dodgers in the race for the fourth and final playoff berth in the National League.

As they embarked on a recent seven-game road trip, the Giants were just one game in front of the Dodgers. The first four games of the trip were at Chavez Ravine, where the Giants gained a split to maintain their slim margin. Up next was the Milwaukee Brewers and their National League-worst 54-98 record.

San Francisco went into Miller Park and promptly swept the Brewers, capping the weekend with a 3-1 triumph behind ninth-inning, solo homers from Jeff Kent and Benito Santiago. In the meantime, the Dodgers were only able to win two-of-three over the weekend against the San Diego Padres, enabling the Giants to double their cushion in the wild card race.

"When we started the road trip we were a game up, and we gained a game," said Sunday's starter Kirk Rueter, who tossed seven innings and surrendered one run on three hits with three walks and three whiffs. "It was a tough trip, going to L.A. for four games, getting here late, having to play three here. Everyone was pleased with the trip. We'll take our chances with five home games left."

The five-game homestand begins Tuesday, when the Padres come to Pac Bell Park for the first of a two-game set. Russ Ortiz, who has won each of his last five starts, takes the mound for Dusty Baker's squad in the opener. Ortiz has given up three runs or less in nine of his last 10 starts and is 2-0 with a 4.82 ERA in three outings versus San Diego this season.

The righthander will be opposed by rookie southpaw Oliver Perez, who has faced the Giants twice this season and compiled a 2.25 earned run average in a pair of no-decisions. Another first-year hurler, Clay Condrey, takes the rubber on Wednesday. Condrey has appeared in two games -- both as a reliever -- against the Giants this year, tossing three scoreless frames.

Livan Hernandez, who was roughed up for six runs -- five earned -- on five hits over 2 1/3 innings in a loss to the Dodgers in his last start, will be on the hill Wednesday for San Francisco. Hernandez has defeated the Padres twice in as many starts this season, although he was lucky to escape with a win in his last try on September 14, when he surrendered four runs on 10 hits in just 5 2/3 frames.

Following the series against the Padres, the Houston Astros come to town. With the way Houston's rotation is set up at the moment, the Giants are definitely going to face righthander Wade Miller, who has won his last 12 decisions, in the series opener on Friday. They may also get a look at Roy Oswalt on Sunday. Oswalt is gunning for his 20th victory of the year on Tuesday against the Brew Crew.

"We just gotta keep winning and forget about who's chasing us," said Santiago, whose home run on Sunday at Miller Park was the 200th of his career.

If, at the end of the five-game homestand, the Giants are either one-half game ahead of the Dodgers or one-half game behind, they will have to head to Turner Field in Atlanta for a make-up game against the NL East champion Braves. A tie with the Dodgers after that would require a one-game playoff between the two teams on October 1 at Pac Bell Park.

Assuming such a scenario would happen to present itself and the Giants would survive, they would then open the National League Division Series in Atlanta on October 2.

We're just trying to make the playoffs," explained third baseman David Bell. "However we do that, it'll be a success. I don't even care that it's the wild card or winning the division. It's all the same to me, as long as you get to the playoffs."

WHO'S HOT

Barry Bonds is batting .362 this month with four homers and 18 RBI. After batting .345 in the first half of the season, the reigning National League Most Valuable Player is hitting .406 to pull away from the pack in the NL batting crown chase.

Robb Nen, following a rough stretch, has converted his last seven save chances and has permitted just three earned runs in his last 14 innings of work.

WHO'S NOT

Reggie Sanders has only one hit in his last 11 at-bats. This month, Sanders is batting just .236.